Illinois bill backlog better, but work needs to be done

SPRINGFIELD - In late January, Gov. Pat Quinn's budget office sent a letter to the four legislative leaders asking their support for a bill to pay back wages owed to union employees.

Part of that letter, though, touted progress made in reducing the state's backlog of bills.

"Thanks to the priority that Governor Quinn and (lawmakers) have placed on making the tough choices to pay down the backlog of bills, the total amount of bills outstanding has come down from a high of $9.9 billion in 2010 to $6.4 billion (in December)," acting budget director Jerome Stermer wrote.

Moreover, he said, the backlog should be down to $5.6 billion by June 30, the end of the state's current fiscal year.

Although voters might not know it from listening to candidates for state office from both parties, some Republicans and Democrats in the Legislature agree that the state has made progress in whittling down the backlog of bills waiting to be paid. They agree that the job isn't yet finished, but insist things are better now than they were or would have been had paying down the backlog not become a priority.

"Had they not done what they did the last three years in dedicating money right off the top in a significant amount, we would be looking at $13 billion or more in actual old bills," said Rep. Frank Mautino, D-Spring Valley, of work done by budget negotiators. "As it sits right now, we have about $5 billion that are out there."

"The governor at the end of January put out a letter saying (the backlog) is much better," said Rep. David Harris of Arlington Heights, ranking Republican on the House Revenue Committee. "I don't think they're that good, but I do believe that the backlog is getting slightly better. It's getting slowly better. Slowly."

One reason is that lawmakers agreed to devote money each year to paying down a portion of the backlog. That will continue in the new budget lawmakers will draft this spring, even though the loss of some of the income tax increase will mean cuts in most state programs. The House and Senate have agreed on broad budget outlines that show cuts of nearly $2.4 billion will have to be made, including $867 million to elementary and secondary education, $719 million to human services and $303 million to public safety.

"What we've done the past couple of years is to appropriate a certain amount of revenue for payment of back bills," Harris said. "I think we are going to do that again this year."

Rep. Patti Bellock, R-Hinsdale, said she's seen the practical effects of reducing the backlog. Bellock is a House Republican budget expert, particularly in human services programs. She said Republican lawmakers were just talking about the volume of calls they've received from hospitals, nursing homes, doctors and other providers desperate for payment.

"I'm getting very few now compared to a year and a half ago. I would probably get 25 a week," she said. "You had people going out of business in two weeks because they couldn't meet payroll. That has subsided a lot. Now I'm down to very few (calls) a week. We feel there's been big progress made."

But lawmakers agree the bill backlog needs to get smaller before the state will be considered current with its payments.

"The backlog of bills is never going to be zero," Harris said. "You are always going to have back bills in the pipeline. The question is how long do people have to wait to be paid."

In the corporate world, he said, paying a bill in 45 to 60 days is considered acceptable.

"Whether it is $1 billion or $5 billion, if you can pay it all within 45 to 60 days, that's darn good," he said.

On Feb. 20, Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka's office said it had just over $2 billion in bills on hand that were less than 60 days old. Another $2 billion in bills was more than 60 days old, with $1.3 billion of them more than 90 days. The figures did not include an estimated $2 billion in bills being held in state agencies, nor $1.3 billion in backlogs to schools.

"The goal is to get down to $2.5 billion to $3 billion (total), which for us is a 30-day payment cycle," Mautino said. "I don't think we can get it done this year, but I think they will get it done next year if we show the same restraint."